William Murray

Ski thru’

judith — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:04:59 +0000

Starbucks is on a mission to take over the world and now it’s opened its first mountainside outlet in California.

The coffee shop allows snow sports enthusiasts to enjoy their Starbucks drink while skiing or snowboarding around Squaw Valley, near Lake Tahoe. It’s the first Starbucks to operate a ski in, ski out policy and lets skiers pull up to a small drive-thru style window, purchase their drink and ski away, without having to take off their gear.

While we’d probably avoid any black runs while clutching a coffee, enjoying a grande skinny hazelnut latte and a view from 8,000ft high at the same time isn’t a bad idea at all.

Last orders for first-class luncheon on board the Titanic

judith — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:28:36 +0000

The only known menu from the last lunch eaten by passengers in first-class on board RMS Titanic has come to light having been kept by the family of a survivor for 100 years.

Over several courses, the cream of Edwardian society were served a choice of dishes such as eggs Argenteuil, consomme fermier, chicken a la Maryland, galantine of chicken and grilled mutton chops. The menu is expected to be sold for £100,000 at an auction next month.

Rate your care home

Matthew — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:07:50 +0000

Two months ago plans to introduce a TripAdvisor-style rating system for care service providers were announced and this weekend, the Good Care Guide was launched.

Users and their relatives can provide real, honest feedback on 60,000 care homes, home care services, nurseries and nanny agencies in England. The idea behind the scheme is that it’s one of the ways that regulators can scrutinise current practices.

But critics say that firms could be put out of business if damaging reviews are posted, similar to what’s been happening in the hospitality industry with TripAdvisor’s reviews.

Government watchdogs, the Care Quality Commission and a number of charities helped to create the system and feedback so far has been positive. Stephen Burke, director of the Good Care Guide, says: “Families have been very enthusiastic about the Good Care Guide. Clearly they want to express their views about their care provider.”

We think it’s a great idea that increases transparency of the current system and will hopefully reduce the number of negative news stories about care homes that we keep seeing.

Curse of the Michelin star

judith — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 09:58:43 +0000

Skye Gyngell quits Petersham Nurseries Café and removes mentions of the honour from marketing materials. She says that it left her ‘shabby chic’ restaurant overrun by diners and says that if she has another restaurant, she prays that it won’t get a star.

The £200,000 burger that could help save the world

judith — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:25:20 +0000

To help solve the global food crisis, scientists have grown beef in the lab. After five years’ work and over £200,000 of investment, it will be made into the world’s most expensive burger in October

No lunch for the British

judith — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 09:34:40 +0000

It’s been revealed that almost half of UK workers skip lunch, far more than employees in other countries, with just 17% taking a full hour’s lunch break. This comes after the news on Monday that lunchtime workouts are on the rise as people struggle to fit exercise into their busy working weeks.

Children’s cereals now so sweet they ‘should be in the biscuit aisle’

judith — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 09:38:10 +0000

Consumer researchers have said that breakfast cereals aimed at children are so full of sugar that they should be found in the biscuit aisle – one small bowl contributes to more than half of their GDA.

Happy Valentine’s Day from everyone at William Murray!

judith — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 16:04:31 +0000

We love the hospitality industry – food, drink, hotels, restaurants… what’s not to like? To celebrate Valentine’s Day we’ve put together a list of things that we love about working in the industry:

Getting the inside track on the latest trends

No two days are ever the same, so there’s never a dull moment

Seeing great food photography

Getting insider tips on new restaurants to try out

The friendly faces we see again and again

Share the love. Tell us what you like best.

Return to the pub to avoid economic woes

judith — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 09:18:08 +0000

As drinkers look to escape the doom and gloom of the economic downturn, they’re visiting the pub more, leading to an increase for the first time in over 18 months. However, people are buying fewer drinks each time they visit, signalling that disposable incomes are still under pressure.

Restaurant closures back on the menu

judith — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:14:09 +0000

Corporate belt tightening and the economic downturn produced a 31% increase in the number of restaurants going out of business in the final three months of last year, the highest for almost three years, research shows.